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J1 League | Gameweek 18
Jun 24, 2023 at 11.30am UK
Saitama Stadium 2002

Urawa
1 - 1
Kawasaki

Sekine (53')
Iwao (52')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Nishikawa (58' og.)
Ienaga (81')
Kozuka (78')

Preview: Urawa Red Diamonds vs. Kawasaki Frontale - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's J1 League clash between Urawa Red Diamonds and Kawasaki Frontale, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Urawa Red Diamonds will be looking to extend their unbeaten run in the J1 League when they welcome Kawasaki Frontale to Saitama Stadium 2002 on Saturday.

The hosts played out a 0-0 draw against Yokohama FC in their last league match, which was enough to see them move into fourth place after the visitors in this match pulled off a 1-0 win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima on the same day.


Match preview

Urawa Red Diamonds' Shinzo Koroki celebrates scoring against Al-Hilal on April 29, 2023© Reuters

Urawa Red Diamonds earned a 1-1 draw against Shimizu S-Pulse in an Emperor Cup fixture in the week that saw them just about manage to clinch the top spot in an incredibly closely-contested group where three teams finished on the exact same tally of eight points.

With that result, the Red Diamonds are now unbeaten in nine matches in all competitions, including five wins and four draws, and they have also not lost any of their last six in the league, winning three and drawing three.

Having been a defender in his playing career, it is unsurprising that Maciej Skorza has built his side on the foundation of a solid defence, and it has paid off for him so far as his side boasts the best defensive stats this season, conceding only 12 goals in 16 league matches.

However, their defence-first approach has been necessary as they are also the joint lowest-scoring side of any in the top half of the table with 20, which is the same tally that their opponents have managed, and they are down in ninth place.

The hosts will come into this match with great confidence as they have got the better of this opponent in recent times, beating them 2-1 in the J-League Cup last month, thereby remaining unbeaten in their last four meetings dating back to March 2022.

Meanwhile, Kawasaki Frontale are a long way from the side that finished the last three seasons in the AFC Champions League automatic qualification spots and find themselves in mid-table at the halfway point of the season with 24 points, 11 behind Nagoya Grampus in second place.

However, Toru Oniki's side showed incredible spirit after going two goals behind against Shonan Bellmare in the J-League Cup last weekend and came back in the second half to clinch the tie 3-2 with goals by Tatsuki Seko, Shin Yamada and a stoppage-time winner from Daiya Tono.

With that win, the visitors have built up some momentum with four wins in a row in all competitions ahead of this match, scoring nine and conceding five in that time.

While that comeback win would have given them a huge confidence boost, going two goals down against the side second-from-bottom in the league perhaps underlines their major issue this season, which has been their form on the road.

Kawasaki Frontale have lost their last two away league matches, both by a scoreline of 2-1, and have recorded just four wins in eight league outings, which is well below what Oniki would have been targeting at this stage of the season.

Urawa Red Diamonds J1 League form:

Kawasaki Frontale J1 League form:


Team News

Al-Hilal's Odion Ighalo in action with Urawa Red Diamonds' Alexander Scholz and Marius Hoibraaten on April 29, 2023© Reuters

Considering his side's defensive strength this season, Skorza will be reluctant to tinker with his backline too much, though Marius Hoibraten is at risk of picking up a suspension, currently on three yellow cards for the season.

Shinzo Koroki has gone five games without a goal, and having been substituted in each of his last three starts, Skorza may be tempted to hand Bryan Linssen a chance in the starting 11 for this one.

Hiroki Sakai will be forced to sit this one out after picking up his fourth caution of the season against Yokohama FC, which could mean that Takuya Ogiwara will start in defence as he did against Shimizu S-Pulse last weekend.

Shuto Tanabe, Jesiel and Marcinho will all miss out on this match as they continue to recover from their respective injuries.

Oniki announced an unchanged side in his last two league matches and having won both, it would come as little surprise if he opted for a similar setup in this one with Akihiro Ienaga, Taisei Miyashiro and Yu Kobayashi leading the line in a 4-3-3 formation.

Urawa Red Diamonds possible starting lineup:
Nishikawa; Ogiwara, Scholz, Holbraten, Akimoto; Ito, Iwao, Okubo, Sekine, Yasui; Koroki

Kawasaki Frontale possible starting lineup:
Kamifukumoto; Yamane, Ominami, Kurumaya, Noborizato; Wakizaka, Schmidt, Oshima; Ienaga, Kobayashi, Miyashiro


SM words green background

We say: Urawa Red Diamonds 2-1 Kawasaki Frontale

While the visitors have experienced a slight upturn in form in their last two matches, their away record leaves much to be desired. They have conceded two or more goals in four of their last six away games, while the hosts have scored two or more in four of their last six at home. We feel that the visitors will be handed their third consecutive 2-1 away defeat in this one.



For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.


Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data


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Written by
Devesh Jaganath

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Kawasaki Frontale
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rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Vissel KobeVissel Kobe38219861362572
2Sanfrecce HiroshimaHiroshima381911872432968
3Machida Zelvia381991054342066
4Gamba OsakaGamba Osaka381812849351466
5Kashima AntlersKashima Antlers381811960411965
6Tokyo Verdy381414105151056
7FC Tokyo38159145351254
8Kawasaki FrontaleKawasaki381313126657952
9Yokohama F MarinosYokohama38157166162-152
10Cerezo OsakaCerezo381313124348-552
11Nagoya GrampusNagoya Grampus38155184447-350
12Avispa Fukuoka381214123338-550
13Urawa Red DiamondsUrawa381212144945448
14Kyoto Sanga381211154355-1247
15Shonan BellmareShonan Bellmare38129175358-545
16Albirex Niigata381012164459-1542
17Kashiwa ReysolReysol38914153951-1241
18Jubilo Iwata38108204768-2138
19Consadole SapporoConsadole38910194366-2337
20Sagan Tosu38105234868-2035


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